SUBJECT:  Holy Spirit

QUESTION:  Various questions about the Holy Spirit including difference between “Ghost” and “Spirit”

ANSWER:

Thank you for your recent question about the Holy Spirit.

Because the expressions "Holy Spirit" and "Holy Ghost" are found in the King James Version of the Bible, some have assumed that there are two different spirits. "Ghost," however, is an outdated translation that should be avoided.

In the inspired original Greek, the word "pneuma" is used. This word, unfortunately translated "ghost" so many times, is properly translated "spirit," as in Luke 11:13, Ephesians 1:13, 4:30, and several other verses, when referring to God's Spirit.

When the King James Version of the Bible was first printed in 1611 -- over 1400 years after the New Testament was first written in the Greek language -- the English words "ghost" and "spirit" meant the same thing. Thus, it was quite natural that the translators should have used both words in rendering the one Greek word into English. This inconsistent usage, however, has given rise to the false impression that a "Holy Ghost" and a "Holy Spirit" exist as two separate spirits.

The only proper way to clarify the subject is to use the expression "Holy Spirit" in all cases that refer to the Spirit of God.